A Return
by ehcanadian
Summary: Luke Danes saw himself walking up the street… Only a different himself. With Lorelai. Laughing, talking, holding a normal conversation. “…What is this, some kind of weird Back to the Future thing?” Real Luke asked. Very AU. JavaJunkie.
1. Back To The Future?

_A/N: A post-Partings fic. I know there have been a lot of those going around lately... I'm not one to usually join the crowd, but the episode couldn't NOT be written about.  
__This story is kind of interesting, though. I hope I'm not stealing anyone's idea. And please, read the whole chapter through. It lays down a common ground of what happened._

**Disclaimer:** If I owned Gilmore Girls, I would have to be ASP. But I'm not, so I don't.

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A Return  
**June 2008**

_'You weren't all in, Luke! You'd like to claim that, and maybe for a while you were, but you aren't now.'_ That was one of the reasons that Lorelai had left him. She had claimed a myriad of other reasons, some insane, others true. But after those two years, that one was the one that had stuck with him the most. Luke could still remember that evening like it was just yesterday. Her words still ran though his mind sometimes, but some parts of the conversation had faded away from memory, while others he had blocked. That was Luke's way of dealing with things. Forgetting. But there was no way he could "forget" that whole night. In a blip of a moment, his whole life had changed. How could anyone not forget something like that?

Lorelai wrote him sometimes, her large loopy letters extending out to comfort him. But instead Luke saw them as a nuisance, as a way of torture, saying, 'Look, this is the life you could have shared with me.' They used to be long and winding, including witty remarks about her day. But lately they had shorted down to just a few paragraphs in a hurried handwriting. It was no longer hers, but a scrawl of incoherent sentences.

_Today, I went to New York City, and saw the Bangles again. Rory came with and we had a ball._

What happened to her memory for details, and her references to pop culture every other word? Maybe this was her way of letting go. But what if Luke didn't want her to let go? He always had a small, harbored thought in the back of his mind, telling his mind that someday, Lorelai would come back. And they'd go along, like no time had passed in between. The diner owner knew that this couldn't possibly happen, but it was always nice to think that, by some break in the space-time continuum, it could be possible.

For the last two years, she hadn't entered his diner. They passed each other by on the streets and had polite conversation, as "How are you?" and "I heard that Paul Anka got sick. Is he okay?", but it wasn't like they went over to each other's houses and enjoyed dinner. Never the deep things they once had. But how could they ever gain them back?

Lorelai could never leave Stars Hollow. Nor Luke. It wasn't an option, wasn't a possibility. But after the two broke up, Lorelai had taken a three-week long vacation to the Caribbean. And for a while, Luke was honestly afraid that she actually would leave the town, and they'd never get their chance to get back together.

It was an unspoken subject in the small town, the matter of Lorelai and Luke. For a while, Taylor's story of the chocolate store and the flower store had come true. People felt they had to choose a side. But after a month, the supporters of the Dragonfly were missing Luke's Danish Day, and the supporters of the Diner were missing Sookie's more formal cooking. So once again, the town melded back into one. Except for the couple that was Lorelai and Luke.

Everyone knew that eventually they had to get back together. A pool had been going around town, people betting on the day that the lovers that were meant to be would finally make up, but a tragic end met it once Luke had found out. That had been a year and a half ago.

Kirk still dreamt about it, and everyday, upon coming into the diner, he'd go "Luke, guess what."

And Luke, being Luke, replied, "What would you like for breakfast, Kirk?"

"I had a dream about you and Lorelai last night. You guys got back together."

Luke would roll his eyes, snort, and go, "Kirk, I doubt it's going to happen." Even thought it hurt him to say.

"But you two are meant for each other. Lulu says that she won't accept my proposal until you get together, so we can have both a wedding cake from Sookie, and danishes and coffee from you, at our wedding."

"You can do that, Kirk. It's not like Lorelai and I don't speak."

"Yeah, but you don't speak to each other like you used to."

"What'd you expect? We broke up."

Every day, the same damn conversation. And then, after all the talking, Kirk will say "Well, since the customer service isn't very good here, I won't be dining here. One peanut butter and jelly sandwich to go, please. And no tip."

Luke would roll his eyes and head to the back, telling Caesar to get Kirk's sandwich, and that he was going upstairs to take a break.

And then he'd head upstairs, look out his window and there would be Lorelai, driving to work, or walking by and staring into the Diner windows, looking for him. But he never was there.

And sometimes, Miss Patty would entertain kids by the giant beech tree in the town square, telling them of a magical couple so long ago. Only in her story, they got married on the fantastic day of June 3rd, and live happily ever after. She'd point down the street, at Lorelai's house, and whisper, "That's where the princess lived." And then she'd turn to the Diner, and say "That's where the prince lived. And there was a great castle right over there," And she'd point at the Twickham house.

But today was different. Today, there was no conversation with Kirk. The odd man didn't even come in for his peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Miss Patty wasn't entertaining her usual crowd of kids by the old Beech tree, and Lorelai hadn't walked or drove past yet.

A small wind whipped around the town park, the traffic light swinging in the breeze.

Then the door to Luke's apartment slowly opened, a tall figure standing in the doorway.

The man's face was worn with time, but nothing else had changed.

Luke turned around, and choked out, "Dad?"

"Oh, don't get all teary on me. I didn't raise any emotional son."

Luke growled, "I'm not emotional. Allergies.", and then said "I've got to be dreaming. You're dead."

The father nodded, but only said "Son, I'm here to show you what could have happened if you stayed with Lorelai." And with a snap of his fingers, Luke's apartment started moving forward, a slow pace at first, but as it gained more speed, Luke could see little blips of him and Lorelai.

Their wedding day, their honeymoon. Suddenly, it stopped and Luke was standing outside Lorelai's house.

He turned around, and everything looked the same. The tree leaves were the same color, Patty was outside teaching ballet, and Lane was walking down the sidewalk with a stroller.

But then Luke Danes saw something he didn't expect.

He saw himself… Only a different himself. With Lorelai. Laughing, talking, holding a normal conversation.

"…What is this, some kind of weird Back to the Future thi-?" Real Luke asked his Dad, but got cut off.

"Shut your trap, I'm trying to show you something here." Was his father's reply, along with a thwack on the arm.

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_A/N: I know, weird, 'eh? Please review, even if it's one word, like "Octopus!" or "Meet me in Prague."_

_Just something that tells me that you read it._

_And believe me, this story gets better. This chapter had to set everything up, but next chapter is more intriguing._

**Next Chapter:** Diner man here reacts to the whole "What he could have had" deal, and also learns how it feels to walk through walls and people. And what's this I hear of a possible Lukelai baby in the (possible) future Danes-Gilmore household soon?

**A Couple Chapters From Now:** Luke also finds out what happens if he never tries to get Lorelai back.


	2. GilmoreDanes Household

_A/N: Wow, I'm totally flattered at all the reviews I got for this story. I really was only expecting a couple, but gee, was I wrong or what? _

_I was trying to answer everyone's reviews, but either my computer's internet is really acting up on the site, or ff(dot)net has something going on. Anyone notice all the ads now? Ag!_

**Disclaimer:** If I had to pick whether to own Gilmore Girls, or a waffle, I'd probably pick the waffle. One reason for this is that ASP already does a _fantastic_ job at keeping us fans on our toes, and also, I'm really hungry for a waffle.

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_**Last Chapter:**_

But then Luke Danes saw something he didn't expect.

He saw himself… Only a different himself. With Lorelai. Laughing, talking, holding a normal conversation.

"…What is this, some kind of weird Back to the Future thi-?" Real Luke asked his Dad, but got cut off.

"Shut your trap, I'm trying to show you something here." Was his father's reply, along with a thwack on the arm.

A Return  
**August 2007**

"Lime green with pink polka dots." The future Lorelai said, "That way, the boy, girl, or hermaphrodite, can be happy all the way around."

"Please, don't think our kid'll be a hermaphrodite. Though with your coffee addiction, it'll probably have your quick wit," The future Luke grunted, yet a twinkle lay in his eye from seeing Lorelai so happy.

"I can not believe you just said that! Quick wit! You never rhyme!" Lorelai laughed.

"First time for everything." Future Luke grunted, rolling his eyes.

"That's like Lindsay Lohan dyeing her hair blonde, or Tom Cruise jumping on Oprah's couch," Lorelai explained, "You just don't expect it."

"Okay then." Future Luke was already confused by the pop culture references. Since when had that girl dyed her hair blonde?

That's when real Luke noticed the ring. Or rings; on each of their left hands.

They had gotten married. Finally. Luke wondered how they had done it, and how they had gotten over the disagreement.

"You came back." His father answered the question in his eyes. "Just about a month later. Couldn't take a day without her. Same way with your mother and I."

"…She's pregnant." Luke saw the little lump in Lorelai's stomach as she passed by, still laughing.

"What'd you think she was? Dreaming about future kids? Mothers don't think about room colors until they're about four months along. Then the stomach comes, and the reality hits them." Luke's father snorted. "Of course, your mother denied you were with her until the hour the labor pains started."

Real Luke started following them, interested where they were living. He saw them turn down the familiar road, and there he saw the mailbox. The red plastic thing notifying them that they had mail was down, and painted above 'Gilmore' was the word 'Danes' with a dash mark connecting the two.

So, they had moved in. Lorelai had gotten to keep her house, and everything looked just the same.

Luke was almost to the point of running when he got to the door. Reaching for the doorknob, he felt his hand plunge through the cold wood.

While the few seconds he stood in shock, realizing that he could in fact walk through walls, the future couple had reached their destination. Future Lorelai walked right through real Luke without a second thought. She turned the knob, and she and future Luke disappeared inside, the door closing firmly behind them.

"Pretty neat feeling, 'eh? Having someone walk through you is always a joy." His father walked up beside him, a sarcastic note in his voice.

Real Luke grunted and plunged through the door, ignoring the weird feeling it gave him.

Some things had changed, furniture-wise, and real Luke noticed that most of his furniture had been entwined with hers.

The phone rang and the machine picked up, with the message, "Hi, this is the Danes-Gilmore Household. We're either not here, or not interested in your call. Leave a message if you must."

"Luke, let the machine get it!" Lorelai called to the future Luke from the kitchen.

"Hi Mom and Luke, this is Rory. I know you're probably not home if you're not picking up my call, because if you were, that'd be like Bono quitting his support for Greenpeace. It just doesn't happen. Anyway, I have some big news for you. Call me back when you c-" Her message was cut off by Lorelai answering it.

"Hi, honey! …Yeah, I know, we were busy… No, not like _that._ Tell me your big news!" Lorelai's face changed to a myriad of emotions in a matter of seconds. "You're what! …No way! …It is? Aww, babe, that's so great! Have you told him yet? …Well, tell him soon! Can I tell Luke? …Whhhhhy? …Oh, okay! Bye, babe, love you!" She hung up the phone.

"What's her big news?" Real Luke asked aloud, expecting an answer. But future Lorelai only walked to the kitchen with a big smile on her face.

"Was that Rory?" Real Luke heard future Luke ask Lorelai. His stomach gave a turn. It was so easy to be sucked in this.

"I can't tell you." Lorelai replied.

"What'd she want?" Future Luke asked, knowing the truth.

"Can't tell." Was the only answer.

"Why?"

"I just can't. The law of mother-daughter bonding forbids it."

Future Luke just sighed and rolled his eyes. "Well, if the end of the world was coming, would you tell me if Rory asked you not to tell?"

"I dunno. It depends how fast the world is ending."

"Lorelai." Real Luke was getting irritated, once again voicing his emotions.

"Lorelai." He could hear future Luke using the same tone.

"Sorry, buster! No can do! But I can tell you now that the world isn't ending, or at least not to my knowledge." Future Lorelai shot back, her 'quick wit' getting the best of her.

Real Luke smiled at the response.

"She really does get annoying sometimes." His father said.

"Oh shut up, Dad." Luke was too weirded out to say anything else.

"Excuse me? What'd you just say?"

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_A/N: I know, short chapter. But longer one next time, when real Luke sees the town and such. Hopefully it'll be out soon. _

_Thank you so much for all the reviews! And remember, you can leave one-worded ones, like "Popcorn!" or Latin phrases, like "Et tu, Brute?" which means "Even you, Brutus?". Or a long winding paragraph pointing out what I did wrong, or such. You know, just something telling me that you read it. _

_Doesn't necessarily mean you have to like it._

**Next Chapter: **Real Luke gets uncomfortable when future Lorelai and Luke engage in some interesting activities. So what better to do then to take a tour of the town! Includes Taylor, Patty, and of course, Kirk. But that's all a given!


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